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♪ [repetitive guitar music]
[drums and guitars]
[sing 'Good'] ♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all been laughter ♪
♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all been laughter ♪
♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all been laughter ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Could you be certain ♪
♪ What you've been searchin' won't be late ♪
♪ [music]
♪ What you've been hopin' ♪
♪ could leave you broken ♪
♪ Don't be late ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop ♪
♪ [music]
♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all I'm after ♪
♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all I'm after ♪
♪ In my head ♪
♪ it's all I'm after ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Could you be certain ♪
♪ What you've been searchin' won't be late ♪
♪ [music]
♪ What you've been hopin' could leave you broken ♪
♪ Don't be late ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop ♪
♪ [music]
♪ 'Cause even when your cries stop
♪ [music]
♪ Wouldn't cut you off or even if I could ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Confiscate your love or leave it when I should ♪
♪ [music] ♪
♪ You've got a big heart maybe start thinkingreturn Is it better to be ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Couldn't cast you off or nobody's that good ♪
♪ Confiscate your love or leave it when I should ♪
♪ You got a big heart maybe start thinking return ♪
♪ Is it better to be on or be good? ♪
♪ Good ♪
♪ [music fast paced]
♪ [music slows]
[drums]
[sing 'Black Night'] ♪ Black night blackness ♪
♪ When I wanted you, how I haunted you ♪
♪ All to myself ♪
♪ [music]
♪ One gift, one slip ♪
♪ Where you're hiding at, who you're aiming at ♪
♪ Won't kiss and tell ♪
♪ Control yourself ♪
♪ I don't want it to I don't need it to ♪
♪ Can someone else ♪
♪ Counting until ♪
♪ When you're headin' to, 'cause your attitude ♪
♪ Turn on itself Kind heart, kindness ♪
♪ Where you going to, are you going through ♪
♪ Heaven or hell ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Won't slip, won't miss ♪
♪ When I'm on to you, send it over to ♪
♪ Your faith in hell ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Control yourself I don't want it to, ♪
♪ I don't need it to ♪
♪ Contain myself, contain myself ♪
♪ It was never that I was aiming at ♪
♪ It means someone else ♪
♪ Ha ♪
♪ [music]
♪ You want it all. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ Crack through it. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You threw it. ♪
♪ You want it all. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ Crack through it. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You threw it. ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Black night. Blackness. ♪
♪ When I wanted you, how I haunted you ♪
♪ All to myself ♪
♪ [music]
♪ One kiss, one slip ♪
♪ Where you going to, are you going through? ♪
♪ Heaven or hell ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Control yourself
♪ I don't want it to. ♪
♪ I don't need it to. ♪
♪ Can't someone else ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Counting until ♪
♪ When you need to, 'cause your attitude ♪
♪ Turn on itself ♪
♪ You want it all. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ Crack through it. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You threw it. ♪
♪ You want it all. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ You want to walk. ♪
♪ Crack through it. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You had it all. ♪
♪ You threw it. ♪ ♪
♪ [music]
[applause]
[guitar tuning up]
♪ [music]
[sing 'When Will You Go'] ♪ Who knew that you would follow me? ♪
♪ I think of you as highly guarded ♪
♪ It's easy when you call to me ♪
♪ I go to where I'm told I wanted them to. ♪
♪ Can't relate ♪
♪ To things back and forth ♪
♪ Can disintegrate ♪
♪ So why do you ask me? ♪
♪ When will you go? ♪
♪ Nothing's permanent, ♪
♪ I thought you know ♪
♪ Why do you ask me? ♪
♪ When will you go? ♪
♪ Nothing's permanent, ♪
♪ I thought you know ♪
♪ [music]
♪ I'll take you where you hold your fears ♪
♪ I'll show you what you know, but can't see ♪
♪ I'll keep you where I know you'll be ♪
♪ I'll show you what it means to be discarded and put to the side ♪
♪ Like things back and forth and can't integrate ♪
♪ So why do you ask me when will you go? ♪
♪ Nothing's permanent. ♪
♪ I thought you know ♪
♪ Why do you ask me when will you go? ♪
♪ Nothing's permanent. ♪
♪ I thought you know ♪
♪ [music]
♪ [guitar]
♪ [music]
♪ Is this your last call to me? ♪
♪ Is this your last call to me? ♪
♪ Is this your last call to me? ♪
♪ Is this your last call to me? ♪
♪ I hope it is ♪♪
♪ [music]
♪ [guitar]
[applause]
Meric Long: Thanks.
Thanks for letting us come and play on your heavenly campus here.
We did steal some people's bikes and ride around.
I hope nobody noticed.
Logan Kroeber: It was the yellow one with the red and green tires.
♪ [guitar]
[drums and tambourine join]
[sing 'Companions'] ♪ Insipid wait and so we play ♪
♪ Companions ♪
♪ No story games, could you behave? ♪
♪ Companions Oh ♪
♪ I'll hold you in, you're holding out ♪
♪ I'll hold you in, you're holding out ♪
♪ If I can wait, could you be mine? ♪
♪ Companions. ♪
♪ Are we the same? ♪
♪ Could we behave as companions ♪
♪ Oh... ♪
♪ [music]
♪ I'll hold you in. ♪
♪ You're holding out. ♪
♪ I'll hold you in. ♪
♪ You're holding out. ♪
♪ [music]
[applause]
[guitar tuning]
[drums]
[drums and guitars playing]
[sing 'Winter'] ♪ Don't know if I'll make it through this winter without you by my side ♪
♪ I waited here for you so long while traveled far and wide ♪
♪ Convinced myself there's no one better, so how could I deny ♪
♪ Your love, it's like a thorn into my side ♪
♪ My friends they understand me better but don't whisper goodnight ♪
♪ I want a lover and a sister, but we know that's not right ♪
♪ You used to listen to my music, I always wondered why ♪
♪ I wish I could pretend you make me try ♪
♪ [music]
♪ I want the days to come, ♪
♪ I want these sleepless nights to end ♪
♪ I lie here thinking how I lost you to all your stupid friends ♪
♪ You made me feel so foolish for the twenty-second time ♪
♪ Your love might be the last time that I try ♪
♪ Don't know if I'll get through this winter without you on my own ♪
♪ I waited here for you forever, I can't believe you'd go ♪
♪ I may not have the answers, but I'd rather never know ♪
♪ Your love was such a heavy, heavy blow ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Goodnight my love, you seemed so nice 'til I knew you better ♪
♪ Now I can tell you're always thinking twice about what might be better ♪
♪ On the outside, there's no conscience, ♪
♪ you're a victim of your cautiousness ♪
♪ You don't try, ♪
♪ and you just lie there hoping that someone will come to make it right ♪♪
♪ [music]
[applause]
[sounds of guitars tuning] [pause]
Meric Long: We're gonna do one more song for you guys.
Here we go.
[guitar]
[drums, music]
[sing 'Fools'] ♪ Our father's been entangled in things ♪
♪ He's been squandering, he's been squandering ♪
♪ And we don't do a thing, 'cause we're busy and think ♪
♪ We're just wandering, we're just a-wandering like fools ♪
♪ Fools... ♪
♪ His son is his prize, he tells a few lies ♪
♪ He's got his father's eyes, it's in his father's eyes ♪
♪ And he thinks in his mind that he's just getting by ♪
♪ But he's a compromise, he's just a compromising ♪
♪ Fools... ♪
[music]
♪ And the stance that we take isn't much to bear ♪
♪ Yeah, we leave things to change on their time ♪
♪ And our failure to care for it leaves us blind ♪
♪ 'til we're tired and we're crazed in the mind ♪
♪ Ya ha, Ya ha, Ya ha, Ya ha ♪
♪ [music]
♪ Now he lies on his back, and they tell him it's that ♪
♪ It's just a heart attack, it's just a heart attack ♪
♪ Too late to return to the ones that you've earned ♪
♪ No they don't give it back, no they don't give it back to fools ♪
♪ Fools... ♪
♪ [music]
♪ And the stance that we take isn't much to bear ♪
♪ Yeah, we leave things to change on their time ♪
♪ And our failure to care for it leaves us blind ♪
♪ 'til we're tired and we're crazed in the mind ♪
♪ Ya ha, Ya ha, Ya ha, Ya ha
♪ I've been, I've been silent ♪
♪ I've been, I've been silent ♪♪
[applause]
Meric Long: Thanks.
[applause]
Logan Kroeber: We'll be playing at the Fillmore tonight
and if anybody lives in San Francisco
or if you know anybody that does.
Thanks.
Female Presenter: Once again, the Dodos.
Thanks so much for making the drive down to Mountain View.
[applause]
So Meric and Logan have kindly offered to stick around
for some questions from the audience.
So those of you who want to ask a question just line up to the microphone here
and I'll kick it off by first asking why you guys always get classified as folk music
when you're so wonderfully loud and plugged in?
Meric Long: Well, this is a recent amalgamation of our band.
We started out as just acoustic guitar and one Tom duo, one floor Tom.
Our earlier stuff is I think closer to folk music but with each successive record,
we've fallen into the [laughs] the cliché of strapping on electrics and getting louder.
Female Presenter: Yeah.
And for those of you who can't see
I just want to make sure everyone took note of the wonderful percussion,
foot percussion going on with Logan. [laughs]
The tambourine on the foot.
[applause]
Logan Kroeber: Give it up for old Tambi. [audience laughter]
Audience Member: Tambi.
Female Presenter: [laughs] So how did that come about?
Just lack of arm space?
Logan Kroeber: I just wanted to look at it. [laughter]
On our first record, there was a song we had done live
and I was doing something with my hands and I didn't have a tambourine to hit.
So I put it on the floor.
And at first I would stomp on it with no--
nothing to fix it to my foot and that didn't work very good.
So I would actually duct tape it to my foot every show
and that was stupid so [audience laughter] I made a shoe.
Female Presenter: Any plans for a custom version of that coming out soon?
Logan Kroeber: If there was demand. [laughter]
I'd be happy to put my name on it.
Female Presenter: So on your new record, 'No Color',
you feature the lovely vocals of Neko Case.
How did that collaboration come about?
Meric Long: We were toying with her band, The New Pornographers, over the summer
and she lost a poker bet. [audience laughs]
Meric Long: So she had to come sing on our record. [audience laughter]
Female Presenter: Any plans to do more with her?
Or have the Dodos perform on her next record?
Meric Long: There was some talk of that but we're just waiting for that phone call.
Desperately.
[laughter]
Female Presenter: But she sings a lot of songs though.
So it must have been a pretty good bet.
Meric Long: Yes because it was,she came in for two days and just like went wild and yeah.
I think she sang on more stuff but--
it happened so fast [laughter]
Female Presenter: Cool. Lucky.
Let's take a question from the crowd.
Is there some,yep.
Male #1: Yeah. On the new record,
it seems like you guys have a much heavier guitar sound.
Could you maybe explain why that came about?
And also could you explain the genesis of the new album title, 'No Color'?
Meric Long: Question 1, the one of the things that we wanted to make sure
we did on this record was have lots of time to record.
Because in the past, it has been just like go in,
record the songs as fast as possible.
And one of the by-products of that was sort of sitting around
with a bunch of pretty finished songs
but wanting to add something else.
And there having just a bunch of electric guitars lying around.
So I ended up playing a lot of that
and it was actually, it was super great and fun for me.
Because like I actually started out on the electric guitar and I had forgotten that
'cause I had been playing acoustic and focusing on that for so long
that I had forgotten that I even knew how to play it.
During the process of doing that, twiddling knobs and working with pedals,
I stumbled upon the sacred Billy Corrigan tone
and I was really,that ended up being streamlined to most of the songs.
And we just added more and more guitars and ended up with whatever you hear.
And the album title I will defer to him.
Logan Kroeber: Question 2.
I--
when we play certain songs, like we just played 'Fools'.
'Fools' to me is blue in my mind when I play it.
Right?
And so [laughter]
There's lots of other songs that we play that I have imagery or colors that I associate with it.
And when we were doin' 'No Color',
we were towards the end of the mixing process.
We were listening to the songs every day.
And I had imagery and colors for the songs but it was all just like gray.
Ashy and kind of like a campfire that burned out kind of look
and I told everybody over dinner one night.
And it sounds bad when you say, it's like, 'Oh. "The Season" is red.
Or "Long Form is orange".' Or whatever.
And it's like everything here is gray.
It sounds kind of bad but it is just what it was
and Meric and I were driving back to San Francisco
after we finished the record and we were just talkin',
'What should we name it?'
And we were trying to come up with a good way to encapsulate that phenomenon
and that was the best we could come up with.
Male #1: Thank you.
Female #1: So you've also lost the vibraphone on this record.
And I wanted to ask how that's affected the time and the travel
on your current tour and what that must have been like?
I actually saw you guys in an airport once and you were waiting [laughs].
And I thought, 'Oh yeah. The vibraphone.
How do they get that from show to show to show?'
Meric Long: We're,well, I'm sure our vibraphonist is happy
that he doesn't have to pack that up and put it together every night anymore.
It's,we just got this like portable vibraphone that has like 30 pieces
and you have to put it together.
And it wasn't the most practical choice of instrument
but we sort of [laughs] really wanted to have vibraphone in the band for whatever reason.
And yeah, we,that's-- I mean it's nice that we don't--
our set up's a lot more simpler now.
But that was one of those things that also sort of happened during recording the new record.
We were just-- started to take off stuff and mix stuff differently.
And by the end of the record being done,
we had an entire record with no vibraphone.
So that's why it's not here. [laughter]
Female Presenter: So you're from the Bay Area.
You're from San Francisco and you've been described as 'music nerds',
'San Francisco music nerds.'
Now that you're here at Google with all the other nerds,
can you speak to the use of technology
either in promoting your music or putting out your music?
Creating music?
Meric Long: I recently purchased a Nintendo DSi.
[audience laughter]
and [laughs] in between long hours of Mario Brothers,
I've actually discovered or Chris, the other guitarist,
Hi, he lent me a game that's like a Korg synthesizer
that's pretty amazing actually.
And I've been looking for another copy of the game
so we could have two Nintendo DSis up here and just plug in the amps
and just have part of the show where we just play video games.
[laughter]
But it's hard. It's really hard.
It's a hard game to find.
Female Presenter: Anybody has any tips after the show?
Another question.
Female #2: Sure.
First of all, thanks so much for coming.
That was really fun.
Related to the question about being from San Francisco.
Welcome back and welcome home.
I wonder if you guys have your favorite San Francisco or Bay Area spots that you visit
when you're in town?
Meric Long: Uhh.
Hello.
Food wise? [laughs]
Female #2: Anything wise.
Meric Long: The first thing I'm gonna do when,
we're actually going down to L.A. and coming back.
When I come back the first thing I'm doing is probably gonna go to Mission Chinese Food
and get my fill of Ma Po Tofu.
That's all I got. [laughs]
[audience laughter] That's all I do when I'm here.
Logan Kroeber: That place is pretty good.
I haven't had the Ma Po Tofu 'cause it's really spicy supposedly.
It's got three little flaming buns next to it.
[audience chuckles]
Meric Long: [laughs] You will. You will pay.
Female Presenter: No burritos?
Burritos?
Logan Kroeber: Burritos for sure.
I've been more on this Colombian kick.
There's a place that's across from the Mission Street City College Campus
that's right across the way.
And I've been going there and getting like,
they make like fresh soup and papusas and stuff.
That's where I'm gonna go.
Female Presenter: I wanted to ask a question about the latest video
because it's a little different than videos I've seen of the Dodos in the past.
You must have performed.
And this video in particular is very dramatic.
If you wanna maybe describe it a little bit
and how that came about starring in your video for Black Night.
Meric Long: We have the director right here.
Logan Kroeber: All right.
I'm gonna try and keep this brief. [laughs]
On that same car ride where we were talkin' about namin' the record 'No Color',
I also unleashed all my video ideas on Meric that I'd been stockpiling for the past year.
And for those who haven't seen the video,
it's a,like, it's kinda like blood sport, Van Damm type of vibe.
Well, that's how it originally started.
But it was originally, originally just gonna be me and Meric in a boxing ring
with like a three round match.
And I'm glad we decided [laughs] not to do that.
Shirtless on camera for five minutes is not the best.
So instead we went the blood sport route,
got a bunch of our friends involved to be sort of different,
sort of like fighting characters, stereotypes, and I don't know.
It was an insane experience.
I've never tried to sort of put a creative idea in visually or like motion picture into action before
and it's like,it's kind of addicting that I really want to try again
'cause it didn't turn out how I wanted to exactly.
Like the thing in my head was not the same as what is on YouTube right now.
Female Presenter: Yeah. What's missing?
Logan Kroeber: Blood.
[laughter]
Logan Kroeber: We shot it in black and white
and supposedly you can use chocolate syrup as fake blood
when you are shooting in black and white.
And we ran out of time and we didn't get to do any of the actual contact.
We just shot a bunch of like the people pacing around, you know what I mean?
There's supposed to be some payoff.
Female Presenter: Wow. [laughs]
Next question.
Male #3: I just want to say thanks again so much for coming.
It is awesome to see you guys here.
So keeping the San Francisco line of questioning.
You guys obviously got your start in San Francisco.
And I'm curious now that you guys have gotten a lot bigger
and have toured around the country,
just sort of how you kind of got your beginnings in San Francisco.
How the San Francisco music scene compares to other music scenes
you've seen around the country.
And sort of what that transition like process has been from being relatively unknown
to getting a break here and there and kind of how your life is different?
Logan Kroeber: What was the first place you played?
Solo.
Meric Long: Ahh. There's a place, there's a restaurant called,
I don't remember actually.
Logan Kroeber: The one that you played at every week?
Meric Long: Yeah.
No. Once a month.
Meric Long: Solstice. There you go.
There's a restaurant called Solstice and that was my first gig.
They gave me a hundred bucks to play for two hours
while people were stuffing their faces and [laughs] and then I just started,
I started playing a lot of the songs from our first record
and writing and playing out.
And then we started doing shows together and then we,
the first sort of like tour we did was,
our manager at the time, she was a good booking agent,
like that's one thing that she could do really well was book us a tour
and so we would just like,
we both had jobs that were really like lenient with us taking some time off which was good.
And we would just tour across the country like literally playing
to four or five people every night in some crappy bar.
But I think, but after doing that for a year,
we ended up recording a record and writing songs on the road
and that record became 'Visitor' and that was sort of our first breakthrough.
Our first record that we put out with the label that got some attention and got reviewed.
And what was the secondpart of your question? [laughs]
Female Presenter: One more question
Male #4: I don't see a merch table.
I do see a table but there's no merchandise on the table.
Do you,are you selling anything here like records?
Meric Long: We can.
Male #4: You can? [laughter]
Logan Kroeber: There'll be a parking lot party [laughter] in twenty minutes.
Male #4: In twenty minutes. Okay.
Female Presenter: Well thanks again for driving down here and again,
tonight's performance is at the Fillmore,
the Reading Rainbow, for those of you who want to see a double dose of the Dodos.
Thank you so much.
[applause]
Meric Long: Thanks
[applause]